What’s The Most Germ-Infested Areas On A Plane?

A lot of people who fly tend to get sick after a business or vacation trip that has them boarding on a plane. That is because an airplane in general is a germ-fest. No circulating air, travelers from all over the place, not to mention the fact there is always that one sick person on a plane coughing away while flying. Still, ever wonder what the dirtiest spot on an air carrier is? A recent study from Travel Math answers that very question!

Interestingly enough, the dirtiest area on a plane is where flyers eat. Yes, you read right, that handy-dandy tray table that unlocks from the seat in front of you is stocked up nicely with tons of germs. In fact, there are over 2,100 colony-forming units (CFU) of bacteria for each square inch found on these trays after testing. What hit the second spot? The overhead air vent, but that was well far behind in the bacteria scale, with only 285 CFU for every square inch.

In third place? Well, the area most would think is number one; the lavatory ‘flush button’, which was at 265 CFU. While safety should always come first, the seat belt bucket came in fourth place in this study, with 230 CFU of bacteria for every square inch.

The research team also reviewed airports, finding that the water fountain push buttons were also quite dirty, with over 1,200 CFU of bacteria for every square inch.

So, what have we learned from this study? Well, if you are travelling in airports, always … ALWAYS … bring hand sanitizer! #Always